TEN short months ago he was Wim Who? Yesterday, Wim Jansen left Parkhead knowing his name will be remembered for a long, long time by the green-and-white legions. He arrived with a glowing reference from fellow Dutchman Johan Cruyff. But the new coach soon found out what the game meant to supporters in Glasgow's tough East End. Celtic lost their first two League games at the hands of Hibernian, who were eventually relegated, and struggling Dunfermline, leaving the fans angry and frustrated. Some even bombarded local radio stations calling for the coach's head. Jansen bounced back to become the first foreign coach to lift the Scottish League title. However, just when it seemed he had a fighting chance of permanently ending Rangers'decade-long domination of the domestic game, he has decided to quit. Jansen, with his out-dated perm - frightening as it is to think such a style could ever have been in - was a distant figure at Parkhead. He gave little away about his professional career and absolutely nothing about his private life. He had moved into coaching in 1982 in charge of Feyenoord's youth team after a successful playing career that saw him appear for Holland in two World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978. He then travelled around the globe in various coaching roles before becoming assistant to Saudi Arabia boss Wim van Hanegem seven years ago. But the two men were sacked shortly before the 1994 World Cup finals and Jansen moved on to Japanese League side Sanfrecce, based in Hiroshima. They finished 10th and then 12th in a 14-team league that was split into two seasons during 1995. The following year Sanfrecce came 14th and Jansen felt it was time to move on. Yesterday's shattering exit was under very different circumstances. Even in the immediate aftermath of Celtic's 2-0 victory over St Johnstone on Saturday, celebrations were tempered by the fear among players and fans alike that Jansen was to quit. He had a get-out clause in his contract that allowed him to leave in the summer - and the mysterious Dutchman has mysteriously decided to exercise it, leaving Celtic supporters to wonder just what will happen to their club now. Nothing could have soothed the Rangers' wounds, after missing out on a tenth straight title, more effectively than Jansen's bombshell. These days, even while achieving their ultimate dream, Celtic are in dire straits.

CELTIC STORM OVER SNUB TO IRISH PM   CELTIC supremo Fergus McCann, who lost Championship-winning coach Wim Jansen yesterday, faces further trouble over the alleged treatment of Irish Premier Bertie Ahern. Ex-director Brian Dempsey, who invited the Taoiseach to Celtic's title-clinching 2-0 win over St Johnstone, is known to be angry about the treatment of Ahern during the post-match celebrations. Ahern was given no official welcome by Celtic and his request to visit the home dressing room after the match to congratulate the Bhoys was apparently refused. Ironically, Ireland's snooker world champion John Higgins WAS given the red carpet treatment by Celtic, a side as popular in the Emerald Isle as they are in Glasgow's East End. Director Dermot Desmond, who paid £4million for his 10 percent stake in the club three years ago, also demanded to know why Ahern's request was ignored. One of Ahern's party told the Scottish Daily Record: Celtic were informed on Thursday that the Taoiseach would be attending the game as a guest. During the game, a message was passed to Celtic that he would like to meet the players afterwards. But we were told that, as he was not an official club guest, this would not be possible. It was embarrassing. Dempsey would not comment publicly about the dispute but he said: It was a great honour to have Bertie Ahern as my guest at Celtic Park. A Celtic spokesman said later: It is not club policy to allow anyone other than official guests to meet the players and that would be only done with the manager's approval.

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